Inactive Fleet Rises as Large Ships Are Temporarily Idled
The idle containership fleet of over 500 teu has reached 157 units for 594,000 teu as at 30 October 2017, due mainly to the effects of void sailings carried out during the Chinese National Day ’Golden Week’ holidays.
The number of ships over 12,000 teu that are idled increased to eight units, that are all temporarily displaced from Asia-Europe/Med loops due to blanked sailings carried out in October, MANA correspondent reported.
Most of these ships are expected to return to active service in the coming weeks, with only a small number of void sailings currently announced for November and December. Vessel demand during the winter slack season appears to be much stronger than in previous years, with the number of idle ships in the smaller size classes of below 5,100 teu down to 125 units, compared to 132 units a fortnight ago.
This suggests that the idle fleet may not rise significantly in the next two months, which could have mixed implications for the overall market. Carriers’ reluctance to remove more capacity for the weaker winter period could drive down freight rates which may trigger ad hoc service withdrawals or blanked sailings later in the quarter.
Much will depend on cargo demand, which continues to remain strong. Capacity utilisation at the end of October is reported to be in the mid to high 90% across most of the main trade routes out from the Far East, including the Transpacific, Asia - Europe, Australia, Africa and Latin America. Only the Middle East routes are reported to be the one main linehaul corridor that is underutilised at the moment.
This positive situation could, however, change very quickly as the rush to get goods shipped out before the Christmas holidays comes to an end.